Sizing up Astros' new Canadian pitching prospect

Brock Dykxhoorn, of Goderich, Ont. — shown here pitching for West Virginia before transferring to Central Arizona — was drafted Friday by the Houston Astros. (Photo courtesy of the CANADIAN BASEBALL NETWORK)

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When Brock Dykxhoorn showed up at his first Ontario Nationals workout in Stratford four years ago, he was lighting up the gun.

The numbers read: 73 mph.

“I really only played town ball to stay healthy for hockey. Then the hockey team cut me and I was offered a tryout with the Nationals,” said the 6-foot-8 Dykxhoorn on Saturday from Mankato, Minn., where he had been pitching summer college ball for the Mankato Moondogs.

Now, he is headed home to Goderich, Ont., to work out final contract details with the Houston Astros after agreeing to a $250,000 signing bonus. Houston selected the Central Arizona Vaquero in the sixth round of the three-day June draft of collegians and high schoolers in North America.

Gareth Morgan going in the second round and Dykxhoorn signing were the highlights for Canadians on the three-day draft as only 16 were drafted — down from 22 last year and the lowest total since 1990 when Canadian high-schoolers were first eligible.

As for Dykxhoorn, it was the perfect storm: Cut from Huron Perth Lakers hockey team, coach Shawn Gillespie came a-calling asking about baseball.

Gillespie had seen Dykxhoorn playing for Exeter the year before ... at shortstop.

“He was receptive to information I gave him, more so than most,” said Gillespie, who pitched five seasons in independent leagues. “Whatever you told him to do, he got it done. What separated him from others was his ability to throw strikes. He made himself into what he is.”

There is a Gillespie-Dykkxhoorn mutual admiration society, the right-hander crediting the coach for “taking me under his wing, developing me into the pitcher I am.”

“Shawn gave me my start,” said Dykxhoorn, who threw the first pitch of the college season this year. The Vaqueros kicked off the season at midnight against Phoenix College and he wound up with a no-decision as the game was scoreless when he left. However, in most games he would exit early, the outcome was already decided as he led all junior college players in strikeouts: 114 in 78 innings while walking only 23.

Scouts who came to see the 240-pounder were surprised to see him sit at 89-90 mph. Armed with a slider, he went 9-4 with a 2.77 ERA in one of the toughest juco conferences in the U.S., beating South Mountain twice, Gateway, Eastern Arizona, Southern Idaho, Northeastern, Pima, Yapavai, Okanogan and six times reaching double-figure in strikeouts.

“Hitters don’t get good swings off Brock,” said Gillespie, who recalled Dykkxhoorn travelling to Arizona with Doug Mathieson’s Langley Blaze in the fall of 2011.

“His fastball isn’t overwhelming, but he stays closed. And that height of his. Doug told me he was facing Chicago Cubs first- and second-year hitters and they’re hitting line drives into the other dugout. Whatever the velocity, most of them were late.”

Compared to former Blue Jays giant Jon Rauch, Dykxhoorn pitched for the Canadian junior team (“one of the best opportunities of my life, along with getting drafted”) starting against Panama at the worlds and coming on in relief in the gold-medal game against Team USA (“my heart was pounding.”)

After being drafted in the 20th round by the Cincinnati Reds in 2012, he had two school options: Central Arizona or West Virginia. He chose West Virginia, but transferred last summer.

“It ended up paying off. I was little skeptical,” he said. “I wasn’t sure of the school or the education.”

Dykkxhoorn is an accounting student with 4.0 GPA and said he graduated at the top of his class (150 to 200 students) at Clinton High.

This spring, he met with most teams, filled out forms and answered questions from scouts. Then Astros scout Mark Ross phoned him.

“I’d never met him, but he told me he had been at four or five of our games,” said Dykkxhoorn. After four or five phone calls, things were completed.

And now he will soon be wearing an Astros uniform.

“He has a ton of composure, that’s what makes him so special,” said Gillespie. “Some guys will have something go wrong and the wheels will fall off. He can give up a homer or walk a guy and it’s on to the next pitch. He has a tremendous work ethic, which I think he got from his parents.”

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Sizing up Astros' new Canadian pitching prospect

When Brock Dykxhoorn showed up at his first Ontario Nationals workout in Stratford four years ago, he was lighting up the gun.

The numbers read: 73 mph.

“I really only played town ball to stay healthy for hockey. Then the hockey team cut me and I was offered a tryout with the Nationals,” said the 6-foot-8 Dykxhoorn on Saturday from Mankato, Minn., where he had been pitching summer college ball for the Mankato Moondogs.

Now, he is headed home to Goderich, Ont., to work out final contract details with the Houston Astros after agreeing to a $250,000 signing bonus. Houston selected the Central Arizona Vaquero in the sixth round of the three-day June draft of collegians and high schoolers in North America.

Gareth Morgan going in the second round and Dykxhoorn signing were the highlights for Canadians on the three-day draft as only 16 were drafted — down from 22 last year and the lowest total since 1990 when Canadian high-schoolers were first eligible.